Fremont Street Experience readies light canopy for New Year’s Eve
Fireworks won’t be the only bright attraction in Las Vegas come New Year’s Eve.
The $32 million renovations on the Fremont Street Experience’s Viva Vision canopy are nearing completion and are set to debut on New Year’s Eve during the “America’s Party Downtown” event.
All of the LED lights have been replaced, and the last section of the renovation — the area on the east end, closest to the SlotZilla tower — is undergoing final testing and approvals. While visitors are able to get a glance at the updated lights now, new content will be displayed during the New Year’s Eve event.
“New content is being created for the screen with never-before-seen graphics,” said Patrick Hughes, president and CEO of the Fremont Street Experience. “Furthermore, the new canopy will provide an entirely new SlotZilla experience as riders will be flying under a screen that’s seven-times brighter than the existing canopy with four-times the resolution.”
Details for the Dec. 31 festivities are still being finalized, but Hughes said guests can expect live entertainment on four stages, onstage pyrotechnics, roaming entertainment, all-new lights shows and more.
Renovations on the world’s largest single video screen, stretching 1,500-feet long and 90-feet wide, began in May. The updates also include the installation of 32 additional video screens, each about 5 feet wide and 13 feet tall, on the columns supporting the canopy.
Hughes described the updated canopy’s signature show as a 10-minute-long “visual and musical journey meant to dazzle the senses.” More details — including the show’s title — have yet to be announced.
“The show will be promoted as a featured show no different than something you would see and pay for on the Strip,” Hughes said. “The only difference is our new show is free to the public.”
The Viva Vision screen first debuted in 1995 and was last renovated in 2004. After updates are complete, the new canopy will have 49,299,456 energy-efficient LED lights.
“The renovated Viva Vision screen, which has the capability to stay on 24 hours a day seven days a week, is going to change visitors’ experience downtown dramatically,” Hughes said.
Contact Bailey Schulz at bschulz@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0233. Follow @bailey_schulz on Twitter.
